Welcome to Save the Koala Month.
This month is the time when we all remember how much we love Koalas.
In recent days, there has been a lot of media, most of which has been on our Facebook and I was very pleased to see so many of you concerned.
Instead of focussing on the problems of the Koala and the many problems they face, the AKF has this year decided to just focus on how much we love the Koala.
Chester and Brittany, the Koala faces of our Community Service Announcement, should bring great joy to us all as they reinforce to us how much we love them.
After being in my job for over 28 years I have been lucky enough to have met and loved many individual Koalas, most of which have now passed on. What they all have in common is a personality. It saddens me greatly that when we drive past a dead animal on the road, we just think of it as roadkill but in fact we must really consider it as a sentient being; a personality that is now lost to us all.
Other charities that really focus on the treatment of domestic wildlife are my inspiration. They have changed the way we humans think about animals in captivity and that will also become our food. So many of you have become vegetarians because of animal welfare issues and I commend you all.
What we must now do is think of wild animals as needing this same attention and love.
Chester and Brittany are caught up in their love affair because it is breeding season and, if they lived in the wild, Chester, as he traversed habitats to find his lovely female, might get killed. And certainly their joey, when it is born would face an uncertain future. Unless there is a Koala Protection Act, we cannot guarantee the protection of Koala forests.
Take some time this month to really encourage others to think that the Koala is important to this planet.
I truly tire of the political games that our political leaders play and if so many of them do not even know which country they came from it shows that self interest is alive and well.
Matilda would like to remind you all that she was indeed born in Australia of Australian parents and that her political future is alive and well.
Celebrate widely and support the AKF in our endeavours to enact a Koala Protection Act.
I am confident that Australia will be in political turmoil for many months to come and it is time to gather the forces to tell the new leaders of our country what is important.
Thank you for all your support – you inspire me.
Deborah